We Did Not Ask For This Life, But We're Living It
by TheCivilState
Summary: At the end of the day, they were simply children without their parents.  Original Family.


_There are thieves, who rob us blind,_

Rebekah's head rested against the wall as she sank to the floor. Downstairs, Klaus still burned his drawings of Caroline; Elijah giving him a brief glance as he stepped from the house. Unconcerned. Elijah was the best at acting unconcerned.

Their mother had done this to them. She had made them into the monsters they were, despite what Elijah thought. And when at last she returned to her family, her sole intent had been to kill them. Her mother had held her in her arms, stroked her hair as she did when she was a child and told her, "We'll always be together, Rebekah." And Rebekah, the perpetual girl without a mother, had believed her.

Esther had made them monsters the moment she stole their humanity. Since then, they'd been desperately trying to steal it back.

_and kings, who kill us fine,_

Mikael's hatred paled in comparison to their mother's, or at least that's what Kol thought. Mikael had always been harsh and cruel; always trying to make his children stronger than the elements. And when at last they were turned into the greatest predator on earth, their father's abuse had ceased. Now, he only desired to kill them.

Kol remembered the day Mikael severed the head of Klaus' favorite horse. Klaus had run long ago, forever a few steps ahead of their father. But Kol had been there, had seen the destruction, had felt the blood puddle at his ankles. He had remained still, the eternal statue, as his father stepped dangerously close and gripped his neck.

"I will kill him," Mikael had vowed, "And then I will come for the rest of you."

Mikael had always hated what they were; what his wife had made them into. At least he was honest about. His hatred was like a blow to the face. Esther's had been a dagger to the back of the heart.

That was something Kol understood very well.

_There's a cold heart, buried beneath,_ _and warm blood, running deep._

Elijah had never been the favorite child. Even his father favored Kol's violence in battle over Elijah's calm demeanor. And Esther had always favored Finn; the moral, noble character who could do no wrong. If Elijah were to be honest, it was true. Instead of being the eldest brother his siblings looked up to, it was Elijah who looked up to Finn. Even when they had brought bodies home to feast on, Finn had never wavered from his determination to never taste human blood. He merely stood and politely left the room or house or mausoleum where they took up residence.

Mausoleum. Yes, they had always lived in mausoleums. They lived there with the dead and piled the bodies in the corners. Something in them was monstrous and when he lingered on those thoughts, he thought death at the hand of his mother wouldn't be such a terrible demise. It would be a permanent one. Finally, after innumerable lifetimes, there would be a permanent change.

But then there was Elena with her large eyes and soft smile who made him think there was something in him worth saving.

_Secrets are mine to keep_ _protected by silent sleep_

They didn't understand and they never would. The younger ones would never understand the motives of an older sibling, nor would the elder ones understand the desires of a younger brother. None of them would ever comprehend why Klaus had daggered them at various points in history and locked them away in coffins.

Kol would never know that Klaus had daggered him to keep him from fighting [and killing] Stefan. Yes, it was selfish on his part and wrong to choose a friend above his family, but he needed Stefan and Stefan needed him. And strangely enough, Rebekah needed both of them.

Rebekah. She wouldn't understand Klaus' reasoning for daggering her. _Our father is too close. I slipped up this time and you need to go to sleep so he can't hurt you._

Finn was still upset about being daggered for nine hundred years and he had every right to be. He had missed so much and it was Klaus' fault. He would confess to that. They had all lost something of value when their mother turned them into vampires, but Finn had lost the most. Klaus had never been close to Aria, but he understood what she meant to his brother. And when Violet came along, all dark tendencies and wide eyes, Finn had been wrapped around her finger with little resistance. Klaus couldn't allow Violet to die, nor could he turn her into a monster his brother would despise. So he locked Finn away in the hopes he would awake and forget about the gray eyed girl. He was starting to realize nothing ever went as planned when it came to his family. Elijah usually saw to that.

Elijah was ever the faithful and loyal one who was capable of ripping out your heart if you betrayed him. Klaus had daggered and awoken him several times over the years and for whatever reason, Elijah always accepted him as a brother again and stood by his side as Klaus schemed away. But then Katerina came along, just like Tatia had, and chose the younger brother over the eldest.

Klaus had daggered all his siblings for the sake of protecting them. Or at least that's what he would claim. In reality, he did it to protect himself.

He was not the sort to handle the rejection of his family.

_Shake off all of your sins_ _let us be brave, let us be brave_

"Nik?" Rebekah's voice broke through Klaus' reverie and he turned to see her, limp hair and rumpled pajamas, standing barefoot in the doorway. He lifted his arm and she rushed to his side, tucking herself against him on the couch. He draped a blanket over his feet and she rested her head against his chest.

"Why don't we ever stay together?" she asked in a small, still whisper. He'd heard her fussing in her bed earlier in the evening and knew a nightmare had awoken her. The majority of their family had learned to turn off their dreams a long time ago. It seemed that Finn and Bekah were the only two able to hold onto that last piece of humanity.

"I suppose it's my fault," he said and she stared up at him, blue eyes glistening and trying to find some understanding.

"Even Finn left," she said, "And he never leaves. He always stays to keep us out of trouble. And Kol…" She buried her head into his shoulder and soundlessly wept. He could feel the tears as they puddled at the base of his neck.

"Finn has always been loyal to mother," he tried to reason.

"But it's not fair," Rebekah mumbled into his neck, "Why does he want to die so badly?" Klaus pulled her away and stared at her, hand grasping her chin.

"You know why, Bekah," he said and she sniffed, dashing away her tears with a shaking hand.

"I know why," she said, "But it's still not fair. We could kill-" Her voice hitched at the idea almost spoken aloud. They all knew it was what must be done, even the noble Elijah understood their mother had to die.

"Then we could be a family again," she said, "All of us. We wouldn't have anyone to run from anymore and we could find someone for Finn. Someone to make him happy again."

"Our brother hasn't been happy since the day we became vampires," Klaus said and allowed Rebekah to slap him. She stood up, throwing the blanket in his face and glaring at him.

"But he could be!" she argued, "Everyone could be happy and we could be a family again and we wouldn't have to run from parents who have never done anything but hate us!"

It was a fact not well known that Klaus loved his family more than anything else. Most thought his love was merely a charade and that they were, in fact, pawns in his own chess game. But he did love them as much as a monster like him could. Their parents' hatred of him left his siblings as his only family. And family, as he had often convinced himself as a child, was supposed to be the only unbreakable force in the world. And yet they were crumbling likes stones. They were becoming dust.

"I'm sorry, Rebekah," he said, rising and resting her hands on her shoulders, "I'm sorry for killing her and depriving you of a mother." She fell forward into his arms and he caught her, holding her up as she sobbed and clutched onto him, digging her nails into his flesh with the belief that should she let go, she would lose him. With their family, there was always that possibility.

"I just wanted a mother," she cried, "I just wanted my mother."

"I know Rebekah," he said as he kissed her forehead, "I know."

**a/n: **The Originals are my babies. In my mind. In reality, they belong to Julie Plec and those other people who run TVD [aka, my life].

Fave, flame, faint.

_[song fic inspired by 'The Weight of Us' by Sanders Bohlke.]_

_oxox_


End file.
